Joel Fitzgibbon (Hunter, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Water Resources, Drought, Rural Finance, Natural Disaster and Emergency Management. I ask him: why is it that the government no longer has a drought envoy?

David Littleproud (Maranoa, National Party, Minister for Water Resources, Drought, Rural Finance, Natural Disaster and Emergency Management) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, well, well! Finally, we've seen the member for Hunter crawl out from under that rock that he's been hiding under for six years. He wasn't game enough to ask me a question—not one question did I get—in the last parliament about the drought or anything else. We've made a commitment to those who have been impacted by drought. To politicise the misery of Australian farmers is nothing short of the lowest political act that I saw in the last parliament.

We put in place a systematic way to address it, to listen to communities at the grassroots, not only with the drought envoy but with Major General Day, who finished up on 30 June. We sat around kitchen tables and we sat in sheds listening to farmers and to communities, because it's not just farmers who hurt; it's also the communities that support them. That's why we're putting in place $1.9 billion of support in the here and now for a future fund—a future fund that those opposite voted against before the last election to politicise the misery of Australian farmers by trying to score a cheap political point.

People in this country want leadership. They don't want politics. You are playing with the lives of Australian farming families. This is above politics. This is something that we can do better as a parliament. Get behind this today and support us to have a strategic policy backed by a centrepiece $5 billion future fund, which goes on to support Australian farming families, not just in the here and now that can be taken away at the whim of a Treasurer but legislated and protected, to make sure we make that commitment for longevity to ensure that those regional communities are supported. It's as simple as that. The question now comes to those opposite: who do you support?

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will pause for a second.

An honourable member interjecting—

To whoever's interjecting: they are not helping anyone, let alone themselves. This was a specific question. Whilst the minister's been on the topic of it, with almost two minutes gone, it was a very, very specific question. I'm going to ask the minister to either address it or wind up his answer.

David Littleproud (Maranoa, National Party, Minister for Water Resources, Drought, Rural Finance, Natural Disaster and Emergency Management) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm happy to. As I articulated earlier, both the drought envoy and Major General Day have gone to the point of consultation. Now it's time to get on with the job, and that's why the Prime Minister appointed me and elevated drought to cabinet for the first time in our nation's history. We had a Prime Minister who in the first couple of days of his prime ministership came to a drought-affected community. He has elevated drought to the highest table of this office. That's leadership; that's not politics.